Our resource hub is home to a wealth of articles, stories and videos about managing and living with type 1 diabetes.
Place your order for our free information packs that support adults and children who have been recently diagnosed.
Our researchers are working on different ways to develop a cure for type 1 diabetes - from growing insulin-producing beta cells in labs to hacking the immune system.
Learn about the technologies that can deliver insulin automatically when needed. And discover the next generation of insulins that are currently being developed.
You could win a cash prize of up to £25,000 when you play the Breakthrough T1D lottery. As well as the chance to win great prizes, you’ll also help fund our research to find a cure for type 1 diabetes.
Choose from a selection of modern and traditional designs in single or twin packs to support type 1 diabetes research this Christmas. Shop online and get fast delivery.
The announcement is the biggest treatment breakthrough for type 1 diabetes since the discovery of insulin.
This legendary half marathon sees 60,000 runners take to the streets of Newcastle, crossing the iconic Tyne Bridge and finishing in sunny South Shields.
We provide a wealth of information and free resources to help you support and empower your patients or students.
Take our free course for schools to learn more about supporting pupils with type 1 diabetes in educational settings.
JDRF has now rebranded to Breakthrough T1D. Our name has changed, our mission has not.
Home > News & events > News > New policy framework launches to improve sex and gender data in UK research
A new sex and gender policy framework published today aims to encourage UK researchers to consider different sexes (biological attributes) and genders (roles, behaviours and identity in society) to address gaps in health data. Even though sex and gender play fundamental roles in our experience of health and illness, biomedical, health and care research still does not adequately account for sex and gender.
In lab research, over five times more male than female cells and animals are used, and in phase 1 clinical trials (initial dosage and safety testing) only around 20% of participants are female. This means women are often under-represented in research, which leads to results that may not apply to the female body and poorer health outcomes compared to males. The MESSAGE project aims to tackle this issue.
The MESSAGE (Medical Science Sex and Gender Equity) project is a policy initiative to ensure researchers consider sex and gender in their research. The aim of this project was to co-design and implement a policy framework that will ensure biomedical, health and care researchers are held accountable by funders, like Breakthrough T1D, for sex and gender in their grant applications and research projects. This work is being carried out by Imperial College London, The George Institute for Global Health, and the Wellcome Trust, a major funder of research.
Today marks the launch of the MESSAGE policy framework, which sets out expectations of applications for research funding, and offers guidance for researchers on how to meet these expectations. The expectations specify that lab research using animal models and clinical trials using human participants should include a representative sample of the sexes that make up the affected population.
The policy initially hopes to raise awareness of the definitions and importance of sex and gender and urge us all to consider how research will affect everyone. By holding researchers accountable and asking for sufficient justification of the sex and/or gender of their research models or participants, we can improve research quality and health outcomes for all people. The MESSAGE team will also be providing helpful guidance to researchers and funders to achieve these expectations.
Funders (both charities and government), including Breakthrough T1D, regulators, science journals, and researchers across the UK biomedical research sector are adopting this policy. Our research team has been contributing to regular meetings with the MESSAGE team to help design and implement the policy framework. We also committed to supporting the sex and gender inclusion policy by releasing a Statement of Intent in December 2023, along with 30 other organisations.
We hope this policy will highlight the need to study and understand sex and gender differences and similarities. This will help to ensure type 1 diabetes research is safe, effective and fully representative of all the people who live with this condition.
Our statement of support for the introduction of dedicated sex and gender policies in UK research.
A blog from our Research Communications Lead about the importance of women in type 1 diabetes research.
The most important unanswered questions about type 1 diabetes, based on the priorities of adults in the United Kingdom and Ireland.
Our Access for All report, launched today, highlights how far we’ve come with advancements in diabetes technology, but shows that many people still face barriers when trying to access T1D technology.
New international guidance detailing how to monitor and support people with early-stage type 1 diabetes (T1D) has the potential to reduce the trauma associated with being diagnosed with T1D, enable people to access the latest treatments to delay the need for insulin therapy, and reduce long-term health complications.
We wrote to the producers of the hit BBC show after they broadcast jokes about type 1 diabetes.
Parliamentary Inquiry chaired by our Global Health Ambassador, Rt. Hon Theresa May MP and Sir George Howarth MP, highlights the risks of type 1 diabetes-related eating disorders (T1DE).
Immunotherapy, beta cell replacement, smart insulins – we’re driving research in the most promising areas to find cures and better treatments for type 1 diabetes.
